Navy FY-2000 BRAC Cleanup Shortfall

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

In a recent letter to stakeholders (below), Assistant Navy Secretary
Robert B. Pirie, Jr. warned that the base closure cleanup funding in the
fiscal year 2000 Military Construction Appropriations Act fell well
short of identified requirements, so not all planned actions will be
carried out in the upcoming year.

The initial cause of the shortfall was the Defense Department's
ill-fated attempt to switch to "Advanced Appropriations," as described
in the letter. However, once Congress rejected that concept, it had the
opportunity to restore required funds, but apparently not enough members
and Senators heard from their constituents that cleanup was an important
issue back home.

At most bases, the Navy will be able to smooth over the shortfall with
good management practices IF AND ONLY IF funds are restored in the
FY-2001 budget. Unless there is a popular outcry against this years
cuts, I wouldn't count on full funding next year, and the already
insufficient funding available for cleaning up closing bases will find a
new, lower plateau.

Lenny Siegel




Department of the Navy
The Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Installations and Environment)
1000 Navy Pentagon
Washington, DC 20350-1000

September 17, 1999

MEMORANDUM FOR STAKEHOLDERS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY ENVIRONMENTAL
RESTORATION PROGRAM

Subj: FY-2000 CLEANUP FUNDING

Funding for cleanup at installations undergoing Base Realignment and
Closure (BRAC) is provided from the Navy's BRAC account, which is part
of the Military Construction appropriation, When the Department of the
Navy developed the BRAC budget, $382 million in environmental projects
was planned for Fiscal Year (FY) 2000. This figure represented a $107
million real increase from FY-1999 to FY-2000 and would have funded our
FY-2000 BRAC environmental requirements. During final budget
deliberations with the Department of Defense, $233 million was shifted
from FY-2000 to FY-2001 leaving $149 million (about 40%) available for
BRAC account FY-2000. This shift of funds, called an Advanced
Appropriation, was based on the premise that not all funds are needed in
the year a cleanup project is initiated. After a project is initiated by
awarding a contract, work progresses over many months and progress
payments are made to the contractor accordingly. Only when the
contractor "cashes" the government checks are funds expended from the
federal treasury. Historically, the BRAC cleanup program has expended
about 40% of funds in the first year, with the remaining funds expended
over the following 12-18 months. Having pre-approved, future
appropriations (an Advanced Appropriation) would have allowed the
military services to contract for the same BRAC cleanup projects as
planned in FY-2000 and have funds available for cleanup projects as they
progressed into FY-2001. Congress did not approved the Advance
Appropriations concept. We have been unsuccessful in restoring FY-2000
BRAC funds to the level first planned.

FY-2000 will be a difficult year for Navy execution of the BRAC
environmental program. Because funds have not been appropriated, we will
not be able to contract for all the cleanup projects we had planned. We
have asked the Naval Facilities Engineering Command and their field
divisions to consult with stakeholders at BRAC bases to ensure we make
the best use of available funds. The risk to human health and the status
of property reuse actions will be prime factors in prioritizing our
efforts. However, we are aware that not all requirements can be
satisfied in FY-2000. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation
as we strive to meet our regulatory obligations and commitments to your
community.

Sincerely,
Robert B. Pirie, Jr.


-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 222B View St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/968-1126
lsiegel@cpeo.org
http://www.cpeo.org